The More the Merrier

Apr 27th, 2016 12:25 PM

July had picked up his room a little, seeing as this was the first time he'd invited Varyx inside it. Sure she was his cabalmate now, but they had always had fun at her place before. He sent her a text asking if she'd meet him in his room for business, though he'd be fine if things ended with pleasure.

His room was similar to the other theater style rooms in the Sanctum. Several rows near the front on the flat part of the room had been unbolted and moved to the side and a bed was put in its place. His door had a lock, but he usually left it unlocked in case he needed to race out of the room to do what doorwardens do. He'd spent some of his monthly funds at one point to buy a cheap couch so that he had somewhere other than the bed to sit and watch things on, though if he had just used the theater he could always enjoy the ready made viewing area. A small fridge sat to one side near an outlet to hold some of his alcohol that needed to be cold and then a bookshelf with other bottles he preferred to stay warm. Some were cheap, some were less cheap, but none were top of the line. He didn't exactly have that kind of money.

After sending the text he sat in a chair near the door and waited for her knock.

**Varyx** · Apr 27th, 2016 02:38 PM

Business could mean a lot of things. Especially to a girl like Varyx. She found herself wondering idly what exactly July had been referring to when he sent her the text earlier. Could easily be something important he wanted to talk about - maybe Wayland, maybe Consilium stuff, maybe he'd heard already that she'd been made Herald. Or, just as easily, it could have been a joke referring to her job. Probably not, but he was cheesy enough for that.

She knocked on the door, waited a moment, then turned the knob. "Hey," she greeted, stepping inside and closing the door behind her. She took a seat next to him, a expectant expression on her face. "'So, what kind of business do you have up your sleeve?"

Apr 27th, 2016 03:00 PM

A smile crossed his face at the sight of her. It had become involuntary and he rarely tried to hide it anymore. He reached over and squeezed her leg in a caring way while he said, "hey, thanks for coming. Do you want a drink from my wonderful bar," he said with a smirk, gesturing to his bookshelf and fridge.

He got up and made himself a scotch, and one for her if she wanted it, then sat back down next to her. "So partially I just wanted to see you, but," he said, shifting his weight in his seat and taking a sip, "remember when I said I was working on something for the Hierarch with Wayland? So he saw a scar over at this part of town he likes to walk around in. The scar was in the 'dream' world as he called it. So me and Wayland get over there and Fate guided me to this news story about domestic abuse involving a councilman. We go to check out the house and end up talking to the man's wife. She scared, clearly a battered spouse, and Wayland tried this reporter bit, but ended up scaring her, though not really his fault. I end up recovering for it and she takes just me in the garage and tells me about how her husband came home one day, was angry about dinner, and, didn't come right out and say it of course but hinted, that he was going to beat her and her son Adam stepped in and stopped him. What got my attention was she was talking about how recently he had changed. Like he'd become a totally different person and that included when he stepped in. I think she said it was like he was possessed. Now me and Wayland, we have our own skills, but I was wondering if you'd be interested in coming with us, or me if he's busy, to talk to the woman and Adam. Maybe get a read on him in a way I can't. Interested?"

It was a lot to take in, but she knew he was one for getting right to the point. He took a sip while he waited for her response.

**Varyx** · Apr 27th, 2016 04:21 PM

Varyx rolled her eyes at the suggestion that he'd only called her here because he wanted to see her, but she was suppressing a smile, too, and failing at it. "Really? I'm moving in down the hall. If you want to come see me, you can just come knock on my door," she chided gently, nudging him with her knee as he sat back down next to her.

A moment later, though, he started in on his actual reason for calling her here, and her expression grew more serious while she listened. Her nose wrinkled slightly at the news about it somehow involving domestic abuse, but beyond that, she didn't react much or say anything while he gave his explanation.

Once he finished, though, her brow furrowed and she bit her lip, thinking. "Sorry, you said he's changed recently. Who has, the son? Or the husband? Is the beating recent, or is it only recently that her son has started coming to her defense?" A frown passed over her features and she shook her head. "It's just... she's concerned that her son is coming to her defense against his abusive father? I assume there's something else about this behaviour that has her concerned, right?" Not that she thought it was unusual for people - especially the child of the abuser - to be too afraid to act. That was all too common as well. But still, the thought of a son growing up, growing bigger, and one day coming to the realization that he was now as big and as strong as his father? That he was suddenly capable of physically putting a stop to all that horror? That wasn't a cause for concern, was it? Maybe she was afraid for her son and what her husband might do, but there was a pretty huge leap between that and "my son is possessed," after all. There had to be something else.

"Either way, I'd be willing to come help, sure." Since apparently the Astral was involved, it seemed a good idea to bring in a Warlock, after all. Besides, this wouldn't be the first time she'd had a conversation with a battered woman. Like it or not, men - even those who wanted to help - could make them skittish. "Absolutely."

Apr 27th, 2016 07:20 PM

July offered a chuckle at her comment. "Very true. You won't be far away."

She had many questions it seemed about his narrative, which made sense. "The son changed apparently, and at first I wasn't surprised about a son stepping in to save his mother, it was her comment of 'possessed' appearance combined with the scar that triggered my concern. She didn't elaborate much other than that, but she did agree to set up a meeting with Adam and her so we could see for myself. With you there maybe we could confirm if he actually is possessed or if it's something else entirely."

At her agreement to help he offered a smile. "That's good to hear. I really appreciate that." He took another sip of his scotch as he looked at her. "So. Excited about moving in? Oh, and have you told Steel Phoenix yet?"

**Varyx** · Apr 28th, 2016 02:40 PM

What could have happened with this kid that his own mother would think him possessed? This wasn't the 17th century. Exorcisms weren't a thing anymore - well, not among Sleepers, anyway. People would call a woman crazy for talking about her son being possessed. She found it surprising that this woman had said as much to July at all. Even if he was a cop, even if he was good at putting victims at ease so he could get information out of them, most people would keep words like "possession" out of their vocabulary for fear of being declared insane.

All this talk was really only making her more curious to figure out what was really going on, here. Which was why she looked a little bit zoned out when July suddenly changed the topic of conversation again, back to her change in cabal. She blinked at him, surprised at herself. She wasn't normally the sort to let herself get so distracted while in conversation - she was always "on," always hyper-aware of the people around her, their expressions, their verbal cues, everything. She had to be. Reading people - and responding appropriately - was her lifeline. But then, this was why she liked spending time with him, wasn't it? That sense of comfort, and the relief of feeling like she didn't have to play that game. She was surprisingly introverted, given how she might seem to other people, but given how much focus it took for her to spend time around others, given how much effort she put into using the right words and offering the right smile every single moment of every single conversation, it was perhaps a little less surprising to think that she needed to recharge alone. It was a strange thing to think, but the fact that she felt like she could be the same person with him as the was when she was alone really was high praise.

Leaning back in her chair, her breath escaped her in one great gust, and she winced a little. "I haven't told them yet, no. Haven't really had time. I haven't actually seen them altogether since I told them about Avis' invitation. We've been looking into the death at the university in our own ways, since then. Hopefully something will come of it, and I'll be able to bring good news alongside the news that I'm leaving. I'm hoping to avoid too many hard feelings about it." She knew she was probably making a bigger deal of it than she needed to. Again. After all, she'd expected a lot more push-back against even just the admission that she was considering it. But still, she knew better than to think that there was no offense caused just because they were being polite about it. Hopefully at least this time she'd be able to control the context in which she broke the news. The fact that Wayland had sprung the cabal Oath on her like that had been a source of greater stress than the actual conversation itself.

But enough about such negativity. She sat up again and smiled at him. "You know I've never actually had roommates before? Always lived either at home with my mom or by myself. This'll be a first for me."

Apr 29th, 2016 07:40 AM

July put his drink down on the floor and focused on Varyx. "Yeah I think we've all been pretty busy lately." His eyebrow perked up at her mention of the death at the University. "This is the professor that died right? Was he connected to the Banishers?" July knew plenty about the Banishers, but not every aspect of all the investigations going on around him. Sometimes working with only Avis and Star could leave you in an information vacuum if you weren't careful.

At her comment about never having roommates he chuckled softly. "Some are certainly better than others. I had a pretty terribly roommate during training. Dirty clothes everywhere. Plates with food still on them on every counter top, and this was in a shared one bedroom dorm. Hopefully we'll have good roommate experiences," he added with a smirk.

**Varyx** · May 2nd, 2016 12:58 PM

Varyx began to laugh at July's comment about roommates. She nudged the armrest with her knee until it lifted up, removing the barrier between them, and leaned slightly closer. "Believe me, I've seen some horror stories. I was one of the lucky ones when I was in my first year dorm. I got a single room." Someone might have been surprised at the news that she wasn't a sorority girl, but when you'd just been voted least likely to succeed... "But, most of the other rooms on my floor were doubles. These didn't even have kitchens. They were just bedrooms, with a shared bathroom. Most of them were fine, but a couple of the pairings exploded pretty violently. One into actual violence." The poor RA had to come separate them at 3am.

"I'm not concerned, I doubt there will be problems," she said finally, waving her hand dismissively. The effect was somewhat lessened by the smirk on her face. "The rest of you seem to get along well enough in a shared space, and we already know how well we get along."

May 2nd, 2016 02:59 PM

July chuckled. "Always the luck one it seems." Though really at this point July felt like the lucky one as he felt her move closer to him. "There's really not much to worry about. I find that when we're not working and stuff people just kind of mind their own business." He smiled again at her and said, "you're certainly right about that. No fighting here, though luckily the theaters don't let sound travel well." A big perk of being designed to block outside sound.

He wanted to enjoy the moment more, but he felt he had to focus back on the reason he called her, even if only for the moment. "So, not to kill the mood, but what we can do is just wait to get the call from the wife and we'll go together to meet the son. So," he said, eyeing her up and down before looking her back in the eyes, "seems like we've got some time to kill."

**Varyx** · May 2nd, 2016 03:41 PM

Subtle.

Varyx chuckled at the way he looked her over, no attempt at hiding it. See, she knew there was a reason he'd wanted to meet in here. No time like the present to test the soundproofing in the theater. Avis had promised it was quite good, after all.

In one smooth motion, she wrapped one arm around his shoulders and pulled herself up onto his lap, faces close and bodies closer. One finger pressed against his lips before he could say anything, and she smiled. "Wait. Before you distract me again, I have one more question. What's the story when we go talk to this wife and son? Are we playing at being reporters still? Cops?" She needed to know, if she was going to play her part convincingly, after all.

And maybe she wanted to see how he'd respond, given their current position.